Train depot may complete round trip to Niles 

By Alec Rosenberg
STAFF WRITER

FREMONT -- The 1904 Niles train depot has survived its share of struggles over the years. 

It stopped serving railroad passengers a half century ago, was abandoned by Southern Pacific in 1972 and faced demolition in 1981. But the redwood depot was relocated from downtown Niles to Mission Boulevard, where it houses model railroads and serves as a railroad museum, open every other Sunday. 

And the depot's best days may be ahead of it.

Almost 20 years after the depot was moved, the city is considering returning it to downtown Niles as part of a long-term plan to improve the Niles commercial district. While residents support the relocation, some council members favor building a replica depot. But both agree on one thing: Niles should have a train stop. 

Known for its antique stores and for being the former home of a silent film studio, Niles has its roots as a railroad town. 

Niles was named after a judge who was a railroad official. And the completion of the railroad through Niles Canyon linked the San Francisco Bay Area with the rest of the transcontinental railroad. 

In the early years, eight to 10 passenger trains stopped at Niles. Today, the Niles Canyon Railway runs from Sunol to Niles every other Sunday, but trains no longer have a place to load and unload passengers in Niles.

"We need to bring the train in there," Councilmember Bill Pease said at a briefing Tuesday on the Niles concept plan. 

The draft plan, a long-term vision for the Niles commercial district, calls for putting a train stop between Mission and Niles boulevards and relocating the depot there. 

Pease said money would be better spent building a replica depot in downtown Niles. The historic depot could still be fixed up but should stay on Mission Boulevard, he said. 

"I think that's a good idea," Mayor Gus Morrison said. 

But Jim Swofford of the Pacific Locomotive Association, which operates the Niles Canyon Railway, spoke in favor of relocating the historic depot.

"A replica is not a restoration," he said. 

Fremont resident Pat Lloveras agreed. 

"I don't like replicas," she said. "If you've got the actual historic buildings, that's what you preserve." 

A Niles antiques dealer, Lloveras said she loves old town Niles and so do her customers. 

"They bring their families to feel the old, to see it," Lloveras said. 

The plan's goal is to preserve Niles' historic character and enhance it.

The plan, which does not yet address costs, is expected to go for council approval in summer or fall. It would be implemented in phases. 

"It's incremental. It's slow. It's modest," consultant Paul Tuttle said. 

The first phase calls for attracting new businesses such as restaurants and within two years adding a town square on the east side of Niles Boulevard by I Street. Councilmember JoNelle Zager suggested trying to attract home interior furnishing shops. 

The second phase calls for having a train station and depot in downtown Niles with a pedestrian underpass linking both sides of the railroad tracks. 

The third phase projects new development on both sides of Mission Boulevard, where there are now houses and businesses. 

"I think the early phases are doable and can create a lot of very good improvements," Councilmember Bob Wasserman said. "Phase three is risky."